8.3%

The economy continues to stagnate, but some positive signs were found in today’s unemployment report: 8.3% or a 15.1% U6 rate. Over 243,000 jobs were added last month, but the workforce is still considerably smaller than it was in 2008 and true recovery will take probably most of the decade if nothing changes. Forty-three percent of the unemployed have been out of work for over six months and the number of employed is the lowest it’s been since 1983. Not really a cheery picture, but January’s numbers are still a positive sign for the economy.